Pretzels, Bratwurst, Beer, and Markets

No, I was not lazy, sick, or kidnapped, but rather I was on vacation and hence I have been tardy on my most recent blog posting. These vacation things are relatively rare in the Slome household, therefore the family decided to take a larger than normal trip. Where did we go? Well, with all the talk about Europe’s financial woes, we decided to go to the financial nerve center of the crisis…Germany! Truth be told, the fact that my mother was born there and I have a ton of relatives there may also have something to do with the selection. Now that I have safely returned, I’m glad to report that the world has not ended yet in Europe…or at least not in the comparatively stronger region of Deutschland.

Here is a shortened collage of my trip highlights:

King Ludwig II’s Linderhof Castle in Southern Germany.

Summer home to Bavaria’s former kings in Munich (Nymphenburg Palace)

Spectacular view of the Neckar River.

Neuschwanstein Castle (a.k.a., the Disneyland castle).

Picturesque scene of Forggensee Lake as we hike up to the Neuschwanstein Castle.

Picture from the interior courtyard of Heidelberg Castle.

Town of Rudesheim perspective from the Rhine River.

Who said there was no surfing in Germany?

Munich’s famous Glockenspiel depicting the marriage between local Duke Wilhelm V with Renata of Lorraine.

“Doe a deer, a female deer, ray, a drop of golden sun.” Leopoldskron Palace as seen in The Sound of Music (Salzburg Austria).

Max-Joseph Platz right next to the famous Munich Nationaltheater (opera house).

Hofbrauhaus…enough said.

The choice of my trip timing seemed fortuitous, since volume trickled to a crawl and there was not a tremendous amount of news-flow. How do I know? Although I traveled across the pond, my electronic phone, tablet, and computer leashes did not fully untether themselves from my control. With the presidential election cycle swinging into full gear, coupled with key announcements coming out of Frankfurt and Brussels, nobody should be surprised to see some more volatility. It’s time to detoxify from all the pretzels, bratwurst, and beer and more forcefully reengage in the financial markets.

Dollars and cents are lost every day, but the memories, experiences, and relationships from this trip will never be lost.

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